Sewing machine apparatus

ABSTRACT

A sewing machine apparatus for sewing an elongated cloth strip onto a piece of cloth in a generally U-shaped configuration includes a sewing machine having a foot and a vertically reciprocal needle guided by the foot. A cloth strip guide is rotatably supported by the foot about the vertical axis of the needle and includes a slot for guiding the cloth strip below the needle. A cloth clamp assembly with inner and outer U-shaped clamp members pivoted to each other at their open ends is movable to a clamping position to clamp the piece of cloth and leave an edge thereof exposed for sewing. The cloth strip guide slidably engages the inner clamp member during relative movement between the sewing machine and the cloth clamp assembly in the U-shaped configuration in which the cloth strip is to be stitched. This sliding engagement controls the rotational position of the cloth strip guide with respect to the sewing machine foot so as to thereby guide the cloth strip as it is stitched to the exposed edge of the piece of cloth.

United States Patent [191 Strang Dec. 24, 1974 SEWING MACHINE APPARATUS[75] Inventor: Karl H. Strang, Dearborn, Mich.

[73] Assignee: General Motors Corporation,

Detroit, Mich.

[22] Filed: May 31, 1974 [21] Appl. No.: 474,889

[52] US. Cl ..112/152,l12/l2l.1l,112/153,.

112/204 [51] Int. Cl D05b 35/06 [58] Field of Search 112/153, 152,136,121.11, ll2/l2l.l5, 204, 214, 211,121.12

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 854,105 5/1907 O'Neill112/204 2,607,309 8/1952 3,034,781 5/1962 3,650,229 3/1972 3,749,0387/1973 Dodsworth ll2/l2l.l5

Primary Examiner-H. Hampton Hunter Attorney, Agent, or Firm-J. A.Kushman [57] ABSTRACT A sewing machine apparatus for sewing an elongatedcloth strip onto a piece of cloth in a generally U- shaped configurationincludes a sewing machine having a foot and a vertically reciprocalneedle guided by the foot. A cloth strip guide is rotatably supported bythe foot about the vertical axis of the needle and includes a slot forguiding the cloth strip below the needle. A cloth clamp assembly withinner and outer U- shaped clamp members pivoted to each other at theiropen ends is movable to a clamping position to clamp the piece of clothand leave an edge thereof exposed for sewing. The cloth strip guideslidably engages the inner clamp member during relative movement betweenthe sewing machine and the cloth clamp assembly in the U-shapedconfiguration in which the cloth strip is to be stitched. This slidingengagement controls the rotational position of the cloth strip guidewith respect to the sewing machine foot so as to thereby guide the clothstrip as it is stitched to the exposed edge of the piece of cloth.

2 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures PATENTED UEB24 I974 SHEET 1 of 2 BACKGROUNDOF THE INVENTION In certain applications, it is advantageous to sew orstitch an elongated cloth strip onto a piece of cloth in a generallyU-shaped configuration. For instance, vehicle occupant air cushionrestraint systems may include an inflatable cloth type cushion includinga diffuser slit adjacent an edge of the cushion cloth. This slit in thecloth allows a gas diffuser to be inserted within the cushion so as tosupply the cushion with a pressurized gas during vehicle impactconditions. This supply of gas expands the cushion so it engages avehicle occupant and restrains movement of the occupant in a protectivemanner as the vehicle impact occurs. Thus, an elon- SUMMARY OF THEINVENTION This invention provides a sewing machine apparatus for sewingan elongated cloth strip onto'a piece of cloth in a generally U-shapedconfiguration and includes a sewing machine and a cloth clamp assembly.

One feature of the invention is that the sewing machine includes a clothstrip guide rotatably supported by'the sewing machine foot so as toguide the cloth strip below a vertically reciprocal needle of the footand the clamp assembly includes a pair of U-shaped clamp membersconnected to each other at their open ends so as to be movable to agenerally coplanar clamping position with the cloth clamped therebetweenso as to leave an edge thereof exposed, and the cloth strip guideslidably engages the U-shaped clamp assembly so as to control therotational position of the cloth strip guide with respect to the sewingmachine foot and to thereby guide the cloth strip during relativemovement between the sewing machine andthe clamp assembly in the U-shaped configuration in which the cloth strip is stitched. Anotherfeature of the invention is that the cloth strip guide includes a slotfor guiding the cloth strip below the sewing machine needle and thecloth clamp assembly includes inner and outer U-shaped clamp members sothat the clamping of the cloth is at the respective outer and inneredges of these clamp members, and the cloth strip guide slidably engagesthe inner clamp member to provide the control of its rotational positionwith respect to the sewing machine foot. Another feature of theinvention is that the cloth strip guide slidably engages the inner edgesof the inner clamp member to provide the control of the rotationalposition of the cloth strip guide with respect to the sewing-machinefoot.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The above specified features and otherfeatures, objects and advantages of this invention are readily apparentfrom the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment andthe drawings in which;

FIG. 1 is a perspective view that shows portions of a sewing machine anda cloth clamp assembly that constitute the apparatus of this invention,and the apparatus is shown as it is stitching an elongated cloth striponto a piece of cloth in a generally U-shaped configuration;

FIg. 2 is also a perspective view which shows the sewing machine and theclamp assembly of this apparatus with the cloth removed from the clampassembly;

FIG. 3 is a partially broken away enlarged side view of the sewingmachine foot taken generally along line 3-3 of FIG. 1 and shows arotatable cloth strip guide that guides the elongated cloth strip tobelow the sewing machine needle; and

FIGS. 4 and 5 are perspective views of the cloth clamp assemblyrespectively shown in nonclamping and cloth clamping positions. I

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a sewing machine apparatus according to thisinvention is generally indicated by numeral and includes a sewingmachine indicated generally by 12 as well as a cloth clamp assemblyindicated generally by 14. This sewing machine and clamp assembly areused to stitch an elongated cloth strip 16 to a piece of cloth shown inFIG. 1 and indicated by 18. The cloth strip 16 is stitched to cloth 18in a generally U-shaped configuration by this apparatus so that it ispossible to encircle a slit 20 in the piece of cloth.

The sewing machine l2-includes a needle support portion 22-thatreciprocally supports a vertical needle 24 for up and down movement inthe conventional manner. Top thread 26 is fed to needle 24 in the usualmanner, and bobbin thread, not shown, is likewise fed to cooperate withthe top thread in performing the stitching operation. The lower end ofneedle 24 is guided by a needle guide 28, see also FIG. 3. This needleguide has a generallyannular configuration with a central downwardlypointing flat head screw shaped aperture 30 that receivesand guides theneedle. Needle guide 28 is itself received within an aperture 32 in thetoe 33 of a foot 34 of the sewing machine. A downwardly facing annularshoulder 36 of needle guide 28 seats against the upper side of this toe33 to limit downward movement of the guide, and a press fitted pin 37 isforced through an aperture in sewing machine foot 34 so as to bereceived within a portion of an annular groove 38 in the needle guideand to thereby limit upward movement of the guide. The upper end ofsewing machine foot 34 includes spacedlegs 40, see Fig. 1, that encirclea rod type support 42 that extends downwardly from the sewing machine. Abolt 44 extends between the free ends of these legs 40 and therebysecures the sewing machine foot 34 to the support 42 in g a fixedcondition.

As seen best in FIG. 3, a rotatable cloth strip guide 46 is mounted onthe toe 33 of sewing machine foot 34 and includes upper and lower legs48 and 49 that have a bifurcated configuration opening to the right whenobserved as in this view. This guide 46 is positioned on the sewingmachine foot prior to the mounting of the needle guide 28, and its legs48 and 49, as seen in FIG. 3, have respective apertures 50 and 51 thathaveround configurations which receive respective portions of needlewide 28 as this guide is inserted downwardly through the toe 33 of ,foot34. The needle guide 28 thus acts as a pintle for cloth strip guide 46'so that this latter guide is rotatable about the vertical axis of needle24. The free end of the foot toe 33 must have a semicircularconfiguration when observed in a plan view so this rotation can takeplace for 270 or a slightly greater amount. Engagement between the sidesof leg 48 on the cloth strip guide 46 with a surface 55, FTG. 3, on thesewing machine foot 34 just above the toe 33 limits this rotation inboth directions. The upper leg 48 of the cloth strip guide is engaged bya head portion 52 of needle guide 28 so that this leg rotates betweenthis portion of the needle guide and the toe 33 of sewing machine foot34. A downwardly extending groove 53 of guide 46 receives the lower endof cloth strip 16 and guides this cloth strip below the needle 24. Thiscloth strip guide 46 also includes a slide portion 54 seen in FIGS. 1and 2.

The cloth clamp assembly 14, as shown by additional reference to FIGS. 4and 5, includes inner and outer generally U -Shaped clamp members 56 and58. The open ends of these clamp members are connected to each other bypintle pins 59 so as to be movable between the nonclamping positionshown in FIg. 4 and the generally coplanar cloth clamping position shownby FIGS. 1, 2 and 5. A handle 61 facilitates easy movement of the clampassembly to the nonclamping position. These clamp members 56 and 58 aresized so that the 'U-shaped outer edge 60 of inner clamp member 56 isslightly smaller than the U-shaped inner edge 62 of outer clamp member58. The space between these U- shaped edges 60 and 62 of the clampmembers is large enough for the clamp members to be moved to theclamping position with the cloth in place, but is small enough so thecloth is securely held with the clamp members in the clamping position.The clamped cloth 18, as seen in FIG. 5, has an exposed edge 64 at theopen end of clamp assembly 14 at which the stitching operation may takeplace. This clamp assembly 14 may be positioned about the cloth slit sothat the cloth strip 16 is stitched to cloth 18 about this slit andthereby reinforces the cloth in this area.

The sewing machine 12 and the cloth clamp assembly 14 are mounted formovement relative to each other in the U-shaped configuration in whichthe cloth strip 16 is to be stitched to cloth 18. This may beaccomplished as shown in FIGS. 2 and 4 by arms 66 that extend from thecloth clamp assembly and are supported by a suitableunshown linkagearrangement that is moved in a suitable manner to move the clampassembly. The sewing machine 12 then remains stationary as the clampedcloth 18 is moved in the U-shaped configuration by the clamp assembly.However, it is also possible to have the cloth clamp assembly 14stationary and to mount sewing machine '12 by a suitable arrangement soas to move in the U-shaped configuration in which the cloth strip 16 isto be stitched to cloth 18.

The cloth strip 16 is stitched to cloth 18 by first positioning theclamped cloth 18. so that its exposed edge 64 is adjacent the sewingmachine foot 34. The cloth strip guide 46 is then rotatably positionedso that its slide portion 54 engages the inner U-shaped edge 68 of clampmember 56 with the cloth strip 16 extending downwardly in front ofneedle 24 and rearwardly below the needle. The sewing machine 12 andclamp assembly 14 are then moved relative to each other so that astitching operation is performed through the cloth strip 16 so that itis stitched to cloth 18 as slide portion 54 slides along the inner clampedge 68. As this operation occurs, the cloth strip 16 will be feddownwardly through the slot 53 in guide 46 and will thus lead the sewingmachine needle 24. The stitching of the cloth strip 16 to the cloth 18tends to prevent rotation of the cloth strip guide 46 so that thestitching proceeds in a rectilinear manner. However, when the stitchingreaches the closed end of the clamp assembly 14, the slide portion 54 ofcloth guide 46 engages the curved configuration of the inner edge 68 oninner clamp member 56. This engagement rotates the guide 46 through asthe stitching proceeds so that the cloth strip 16 is always guideddownwardly below needle 24 from a forward direction toward which theneedle is moving. Thus, the sliding engagement of the rotatable clothstrip guide on the sewing machine foot with the clamp assembly 14controls the rotational position of this guide during the stitchingoperation and ensures that the cloth strip 16 is stitched to the clothin the U- shaped configuration that is desired.

This invention thus provides a sewing machine apparatus for sewing anelongated cloth strip onto a piece of cloth in a generally U-shapedconfiguration.

What is claimed is:

1. A sewing machine apparatus for sewing an elongated cloth strip onto apiece of cloth in a generally U- shaped configuration, the apparatuscomprising, a sewing machine including a foot and a verticallyreciprocal needle guided by the foot,a cloth guidefor guiding the clothstrip below the needle, means rotatably supporting the cloth strip guideon the foot about the vertical axis of the needle and the cloth stripguide having a slide portion, a cloth clamp assembly including a pair ofgenerally U-shaped clamp members connected to each other at the openends thereof so as to be movable between a nonclamping position and agenerally coplanar clamping position, the piece of cloth being clampedbetween the clamp members in the clamping position so as to leave anedge thereof exposed for sewing, and a U-shaped slide surface on theclamp assembly which is engaged by the slide portion of the cloth stripguide during relative movement between the sewing machine and the clampassembly in the U-shaped configuration in which the cloth strip is to bestitched to the piece of cloth, this engagement controlling therotational position of the cloth strip guidewith respect to the sewingmachine footso as to thereby guide the cloth strip as it is stitched tothe exposed edge of the piece of cloth within the U-shaped configurationof the clamp assembly. r

2. A sewing machine apparatus for sewing an elongated cloth strip onto apiece of cloth in a generally U- shaped configuration, the apparatuscomprising, a sewing machine including a foot and a verticallyreciprocal needle guided by the foot, a cloth strip guide including aslot for guiding the cloth strip below the needle, means rotatablysupporting the cloth strip guide onthe foot about the vertical axis ofthe needle and the cloth strip guide having a slide portion, a clothclamp assembly including inner and outer generally U-shaped clampmembers pivoted to each other at the open ends thereof so as to bemovable between a nonclamping position and a generally coplanar clampingposition, the piece of cloth being clamped between the clamp members inthe clamping position so as to leave an edge thereof exposed for sewing,and a U-shaped slide surface on the inner clamp member which is engagedby the slide portion of the cloth strip guide during relative movementbetween the sewing machine and the clamp assembly in the U-shapedconfiguration in which the cloth strip is to be stitched to the piece ofcloth, this engagement controlling the rotational position of the clothstrip guide with respect to the sewing machine foot so as to therebyguide the cloth strip as it. is stitched to the exposed edge of thepiece of cloth within the U-shaped configuration of the clamp assembly.

1. A sewing machine apparatus for sewing an elongated cloth strip onto apiece of cloth in a generally U-shaped configuration, the apparatuscomprising, a sewing machine including a foot and a verticallyreciprocal needle guided by the foot, a cloth guide for guiding thecloth strip below the needle, means rotatably supporting the cloth stripguide on the foot about the vertical axis of the needle and the clothstrip guide having a slide portion, a cloth clamp assembly including apair of generally U-shaped clamp members connected to each other at theopen ends thereof so as to be movable between a nonclamping position anda generally coplanar clamping position, the piece of cloth being clampedbetween the clamp members in the clamping position so as to leave anedge thereof exposed for sewing, and a U-shaped slide surface on theclamp assembly which is engaged by the slide portion of the cloth stripguide during relative movement between the sewing machine and the clampassembly in the U-shaped configuration in which the cloth strip is to bestitched to the piece of cloth, this engagement controlling therotational position of the cloth strip guide with respect to the sewingmachine foot so as to thereby guide the cloth strip as it is stitched tothe exposed edge of the piece of cloth within the Ushaped configurationof the clamp assembly.
 2. A sewing machine apparatus for sewing anelongated cloth strip onto a piece of cloth in a generally U-shapedconfiguration, the apparatus comprising, a sewing machine including afoot and a vertically reciprocal needle guided by the foot, a clothstrip guide including a slot for guiding the cloth strip below theneedle, means rotatably supporting the cloth strip guide on the footabout the vertical axis of the needle and the cloth strip guide having aslide portion, a cloth clamp assembly including inner and outergenerally U-shaped clamp members pivoted to each other at the open endsthereof so as to be movable between a nonclamping position and agenerally coplanar clamping position, the piece of cloth being clampedbetween the clamp members in the clamping position so as to leave anedge thereof exposed for sewing, and a U-shaped slide surface on theinner clamp member which is engaged by the slide portion of the clothstrip guide during relative movement between the sewing machine and theclamp assembly in the U-shaped configuration in which the cloth strip isto be stitched to the piece of cloth, this engagement controlling therotational position of the cloth strip guide with respect to the sewingmachine foot so as to thereby guide the cloth strip as it is stitched tothe exposed edge of the piece of cloth within the U-shaped configurationof the clamp assembly.